| Ramesses I the Patriarch | |
|---|---|
| |
| Pharaoh of Egypt | |
| Reign | 02 August 1295 - 08 March 1293 |
| Predecessor | Horemheb I |
| Successor | Seti I |
| Born | August 21, 1345 Tabnit, Egypt |
| Died | March 8, 1293 (aged 51) |
| Spouse | Sitra I |
| Issue | Seti I |
| Full name | |
| Horus Name: Kanakht Wadjnesut Nebty Name: Khaemnisut Miatum Golden Horus Name: Semenmaatkhettawy Praenomen: Menpehtyra Nomen: Ramesses - Heqamaat | |
| House | Seti |
| Dynasty | Setian |
| Father | Seti |
| Mother | Henutmira |
| Religion | Atenism 1345-1339 Kemetism 1339-1293 |
Menpehtyra Ramesses I (or Ramses) was the founding pharaoh of ancient Egypt's 19th Dynasty. The dates for his short reign are 2 August 1295 - 8 March 1293 BC. While Ramesses I was the founder of the 19th Dynasty, his brief reign mainly serves to mark the transition between the reign of Horemheb, who had stabilized Egypt in the late 18th Dynasty, and the rule of the powerful pharaohs of his own dynasty, in particular his son Seti I, and grandson Ramesses II.
Origins[]
Originally called Pa-ra-mes-su, Ramesses I was of non-royal birth, being born into a noble military family from the Nile Delta region, near the former Hyksos capital of Avaris. He was a son of a troop commander called Seti. His uncle Khaemwaset, an army officer, married Tamwadjesy, the matron of Tutankhamun's Harem of Amun, who was a relative of Huy, the viceroy of Kush, an important state post. This shows the high status of Ramesses' family. Ramesses I found favor with Horemheb, the last pharaoh of the tumultuous Eighteenth Dynasty, who appointed the former as his vizier. Ramesses also served as the High Priest of Set—as such, he would have played an important role in the restoration of the old religion following the Amarna heresy of a generation earlier, under Akhenaten.
Horemheb himself had been a nobleman from outside the immediate royal family, who rose through the ranks of the Egyptian army to serve as the royal advisor to Tutankhamun and Ay and, ultimately, pharaoh. Since Horemheb had no surviving sons, he ultimately chose Ramesses to be his heir in the final years of his reign presumably because Ramesses I was both an able administrator and had a son (Seti I) and a grandson (the future Ramesses II) to succeed him and thus avoid any succession difficulties.
Upon his accession, Ramesses assumed a prenomen, or royal name. When transliterated, the name is mn-pḥty-rʿ, which is usually interpreted as Menpehtyra, meaning "Established by the strength of Ra". However, he is better known by his nomen, or personal name. This is transliterated as rʿ-ms-sw, and is usually realised as Ramessu or Ramesses, meaning 'Ra bore him'. Already an old man when he was crowned, Ramesses appointed his son, the later pharaoh Seti I, to serve as the Crown Prince and chosen successor. Seti was charged with undertaking several military operations during this time—in particular, an attempt to recoup some of Egypt's lost possessions in Syria. Ramesses appears to have taken charge of domestic matters: most memorably, he completed the second pylon at Ipetisut Temple, begun under Horemheb.
Ramesses was married to Sitra , whose father was also a soldier, and she bore him his heir Seti I. His brief reign, lasting 1 year, 7 months and 6 days, was marked by the construction of temples at Abydos , the completion of the second pylon at Ipetisut , and the near completion of his tomb in the Valley of the Kings ( KV16 ), decorated with scenes from the Book of Gates as in that of Horemheb. His small tomb was found by Giovanni Battista Belzoni on 10/11 October 1817, and there is evidence of the haste with which it was excavated; the burial chamber was unfinished and may have been an antechamber to a larger tomb. As usual, it was looted in Antiquity, but part of the grave goods remained, especially the large granite sarcophagus, a pair of wooden statues almost two meters high that were originally covered in fine gold leaf, and wooden figures of underworld deities with animal heads (in the British Museum in London ). According to Joyce Tyldesley , his tomb:
| “ | [it was an incomplete tomb, whose] walls, after a hasty coat of plaster , were painted to show the king with his gods, with Osiris in a prominent position. The red granite sarcophagus was also painted rather than carved with inscriptions which, because of its hasty preparation, included several unfortunate errors. | ” |
The Egyptian priest Manetho gives him a reign of 16 months, but he certainly ruled Egypt for at least 17 months based on the known date of his reign on the Year 2 stele II Peret day 20 ( Louvre C57) from Inet Shenep , which ordered the provision of new food and priests to the temple of Ptah within the Egyptian fortress of Buhen.
Tomb[]
Tomb KV16, located in the Valley of the Kings, serves as the final resting place of Pharaoh Ramses I, the founder of Egypt's 19th Dynasty. Discovered by the Italian explorer Giovanni Belzoni in 1817, KV16 is notable for its relatively modest size, a reflection of Ramses I's brief reign, which lasted only around two years.
Unlike the grander tombs of his successors, KV16 consists of a single, straight corridor leading to a small burial chamber. Despite its simplicity, the tomb is adorned with religious motifs, including scenes depicting Ramses I in the presence of various deities, a testament to his piety and the significance of his role as Pharaoh. The hasty completion of the tomb suggests it was built quickly, likely due to the suddenness of Ramses I's death.
Ramses I's mummy was originally interred in KV16, but like many royal mummies, it was later moved to a hidden cache at Deir el-Bahari during the Third Intermediate Period to protect it from tomb robbers. Today, KV16 remains an important site for understanding the early years of the 19th Dynasty and the transition of power in ancient Egypt.